When sports become life, things become complicated

As an avid sports fan, I take my sports very seriously. If my team loses on Saturday afternoon, I’m done for the day. I don’t want to do anything and I don’t want to talk to anybody. I’m just in a bad mood. That begs the question, do we, as a society, take sports too seriously?

Before the accusations of blasphemy come raining in, let me finish. Why do we take such an interest in sport? We feel as if we can be a part of something more. We feel connected to the team. We feel like a part of something bigger than ourselves. We bleed our team colors.

Well, maybe not that literally, but it might as well be for some of us. In all honesty though, why do we take it so seriously that we let it effect our lives negatively? After all, it’s just a game. That’s all it is. While sport has had its moments such as the “Miracle on Ice” that brought a country together, the outcome of the NFL games this Sunday won’t change anything else about our lives. We’ll cheer if our team wins, and we’ll blame the referees if they lose.

After the tragedy at the Boston Marathon, the fierce rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox was put on hold. Yankee Stadium displayed “United We Stand,” with both teams’ logos. The atmosphere that night was one that transcended the game. The two bitter rivals put away all animosity for one night, but should it really take a national tragedy for us to realize that this is just a game and we have bigger issues besides which team is better?

I understand that sport is an escape for people. For three hours somebody can forget about everything negative they’re going through, but we all know that one person that takes it too seriously. That person who belittles anyone who doesn’t think their team is the best team in the nation even though they’ve already lost two or three games. That’s the type of fan this is directed to.

Two years ago, a San Fransisco Giants fan was nearly beaten to death outside of Dodger Stadium after a baseball game. Why? He was wearing black and orange instead of grey and blue. No allegiance to a team is worth a human life.

Society loves sports. We always have, and we always will. However, we have to realize that it is just a game. It’s okay to be a hardcore fan. It’s okay to be a bit exuberant when your team wins a Hail Mary at the end of fourth quarter. It’s just important to remember that when it’s your team that loses on that Hail Mary, that it’s just a game, it doesn’t change your immediate life.